The Magic Hand of Chance
by Delylah
Summary: A home for all my Harry Potter drabbles, shorts, fic bits, ficlets, etc. Mostly Harry/Ginny.
1. Inferno

**A/N:** I'm trying to publish these in the order I wrote them. This one was from way back in 2004.

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The flames sent a plume of smoke billowing up hundreds of feet in the air, but the street remained silent around him. No one seemed to notice or care that one of the houses on Grimmauld Place was burning to cinders in the middle of the night.

He could feel the heat beginning to blister his skin, but he refused to step away until it was finished. It was no less than he deserved; perhaps it was an early taste of the Hell that his aunt had so loved to threaten him with when he was younger. He didn't believe in Hell anymore, at least, not in any other besides the one he had resided in for the past seventeen years. Flecks of ash lit upon his dark robes, smoldering briefly before they extinguished themselves. He wondered if anyone would take more notice than they had of the house if he were to ignite in front of it. Would he scream? He thought not. He had learned, in seventeen years, that the pain was only worse if you screamed.

No ordinary fire, the flames consumed the timber of the old house the way a starving wolf might devour the flesh of its prey in great gulps, leaving nothing behind. It had taken him months to find just the right spell. _Incendio _simply wouldn't do. He wanted nothing left, no reminders of the house, its former inhabitants, nothing that might reach out from the blackness to suck him back into a life he was determined to leave behind.

He was startled when a dark figure shuffled across the sidewalk in front of him, but the man—or woman, he couldn't be certain—paid him no mind other than to nod once in his direction. He wondered why the person didn't stop to question the orange glow that had to illuminate his face, but perhaps he or she hadn't noticed it anymore than they had noticed the inferno roaring just a few steps to their right.

Finally, the fire burned itself down to the point that the only things left were small bits of metal lying in a blackened hole in the ground, still glowing red. And if he noticed a small, twisted skeleton there in the corner, where the boiler would have been, so be it.


	2. Bits of Destiny, HPGW 100-word drabbles

**Author's Note: These are all Harry/Ginny 100 word drabbles, most were posted on the HPGW100 community on LJ. They're presented here in the order I wrote them, beginning in May 2005.**

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**Those Words**  
**Prompt:** Firsts

"I love you," he whispered in the darkness.

He'd never uttered those words before. Who would he have told? His aunt or uncle? He'd never had a chance to love them. Ron, or Hermione? He thought they knew.

She, sleeping soundly in his arms, did not respond. He stroked her tomato-red hair away from her ear, which he then traced gently with his finger. He wasn't ready for her to hear. But he would be, soon. He would look into her eyes and repeat those words, clearly, so there was no mistake. She would hear, and understand.

He was hers.

**Title:** A Dearth of Tears  
**Prompt:** Rain  
**Words:** 100  
**Rating:** PG  
**Other characters/pairings:** None  
**Warnings:** much angst, character death  
Author's Notes: Yay! I've been looking forward to this all week. This wound up much darker than I intended, but, it's what the muse inspired.

There had been no rain for months. The world around them was dying of thirst, and she couldn't help but think, _how fitting,_ as she watched him dying, too, a little more every day, with every new curse he learned, every headline he read. They could hide from Him, but not from the stark reality of their world crumbling to ashes.

When he left, she returned to the Burrow to wait and pray, all day and all night until, in the gray light of dawn, a drop of water splashed her face, then another. The world wept.

Ginny could not.

**Title:** Victory  
**Words:** 100  
**Rating:** PG  
**Prompt:** Celebrations  
**Notes:** (I don't seem to have ever published this one, weird)

Harry handed Ginny a Butterbeer and sat next to her on the couch. Together they watched the antics of their teammates as they recapped the game, sharing sweets from Honeydukes and laughing uproariously.

"We won the cup," Harry said with an unsteady grin that made Ginny think his bottle was filled with Firewhiskey.

"I know," she said, smiling as she sipped her drink. "You're a great captain, Harry. You led us to victory."

"I just followed my star chaser," he said.

Ginny laughed. "Harry Potter, follow anyone?"

He leaned closer. "I'd follow you anywhere."

**Title:** Coming of Age  
**Prompt:** Birthday Celebrations  
**Words:** 100  
**Rating:** G  
**Other characters/pairings:** None  
**Warnings:** None  
**Author's Notes:** It's not exactly a celebration, but it is a birthday.

She hadn't seen him in a year, but she found him easily, his black hair a sharp contrast to the cluster of red surrounding him. He straightened from his hunched position over the table, where he and his generals were scrutinizing battle plans. Conversation ceased as the others raised their heads too, following his gaze as he turned.

He stared hungrily, his gaze devouring her as a starving man devours a crust of bread, but his words were harsh.

"Why are you here?" he demanded.

"It's my birthday. I'm seventeen today," she replied.

Wordlessly, he gathered her into his arms.

**Title:** Heart's Done Time

**Prompt:** Heat  
**Words:** 100  
**Rating:** G  
**Other characters/pairings:** None.  
**Warnings:** None.  
**Author's Notes:** Romantic, sappy fluff (with the usual dash of angst). Whee! :) (and I borrowed the title from an Aerosmith song which doesn't quite fit, unless you ignore the "red light" part)

It was nearly noon. The sky was clear and sunny; Harry was broiling in his dress robes. Though relief was only a cooling charm away, he couldn't do anything about it, because the ceremony had just begun. As the guests turned their heads to observe the procession, Harry couldn't help but follow. The sight of her, clad in pale gold, hair twisted up elegantly, was a dash of cold reality. He wasn't over her. He didn't think he ever would be.

When she passed before him, she lifted her eyes to meet his, and Harry's heart went up in flames.

**Title:** The Lie Behind the Smile  
Prompt: Tears  
**Words:** 100  
**Rating:** G  
**Warnings:** none (other than angst)  
**Author's Notes:** I'm playing catch-up here, so this is a drabble from a theme word a few weeks ago. Just trying to prod the muse into action. : )

Ginny's face ached from smiling. She'd smiled as the photographer had snapped pictures of her standing with the happy couple. She'd smiled as Bill and Fleur delicately fed each other slices of cake. She'd smiled at Harry as they danced, even though his hand clenched her waist painfully, and he refused to meet her gaze. When she'd waved goodbye to Ron, Hermione and Harry, for what she feared might be the last time, she smiled, with dry eyes.

The wedding pictures were delivered while Bill and Fleur were on their honeymoon in France. Ginny was weeping in every single one.

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That's it for 2005. I'll add more later in another chapter.


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